System and method for providing voice messaging with dynamic content

ABSTRACT

A system and method for creating and distributing messages including dynamic content is provided. In one form, an entity provides a plurality of content segments for use in building a dynamic message. The entity also provides a listing of end users to receive a message and information associated with the user, such as demographic or prior purchasing information. In an alternate form, the service connects to the user in a communication session and collects information from the user directly. The service then uses this information, whether provided by the entity or the end user, as the basis for selection of various content segments which will make up a dynamic message for presentation to the user.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.11/765,756 filed Jun. 20, 2007 which claims the benefit of U.S.Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/815,160 filed Jun. 20, 2006entitled “System and Method for Providing Messaging with DynamicContent”, both of which are hereby incorporated by reference in theirentirety to the extent not inconsistent.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to telecommunication systems andmethods as well as various forms of dynamic content delivery. Moreparticularly, but not exclusively, the present invention pertains to asystem and method for providing voice messages including dynamic contentto a permission based set of users, including the ability to prompt forand receive responses from a user during a live session and dynamicallymodify the content presented.

BACKGROUND

There have been attempts to provide content delivery and subscriptionservices. Prior systems have included text messaging services, voicemessaging services, and other content delivery and subscriptionservices. Many businesses, political parties, entertainers, and similarorganizations have utilized these services to reach out to theircustomers, members, and fans. Those systems have achieved success, buthave been limited by a number of different problems, such as theinability to easily customize content for a large number of recipients.In particular, it would be entirely cost and time prohibitive for alarge company wishing to reach its customers to create a unique contentsegment for each customer. Additionally, when content is created fordistribution to a large group of customers, the content loses a personalnature and is more easily disregarded by the user. As such, there is aneed for a system in which content targeted to individual users can becreated, yet avoids the need to create an enormous library of uniquecontent.

SUMMARY

Various technologies and techniques are disclosed for delivering dynamicvoice messages to a permission based set of users. A messaging servicereceives a list of users from an entity to which a message is to bedelivered. Preferably, the users are all permission based users in thatthey have indicated a willingness to be contacted by the entity. Theentity then provides a number of content segments to the service for usein building dynamic voice messages for delivery to the users. In oneembodiment, the service constructs a voice message as a serialcombination of the various content segments for delivery to a user basedupon information contained in the user's associated profile. In afurther form, the service connects to the user and presents a number ofprompts and generates a voice message for presentation to the user basedupon the user's responses.

In yet another embodiment, the service maintains a list of users whohave indicated their unwillingness to receive future content. Theservice then ensures, prior to initiating a communication session, thatthe designated device of the target user is not on the list. In thepreferred embodiment this functionality ensures that each user contactedhas provided their permission to the entity on whose behalf thecommunications are initiated and that they still wish to receive thecommunications.

This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in asimplified form that are described in further detail in the detaileddescription and drawings contained herein. This summary is not intendedto identify key features or essential features of the claimed subjectmatter, nor is it intended to be used as an aid in determining the scopeof the claimed subject matter. Yet other forms, embodiments, objects,advantages, benefits, features, and aspects of the present inventionwill become apparent from the detailed description and drawingscontained herein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic view of a computer system of oneimplementation.

FIG. 2 is a process flow diagram demonstrating one example of the stagesinvolved in configuring content distribution using the service operatingon the system of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a logical view of the content segments provided by the entityin one embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a process flow diagram demonstrating one example of the stagesinvolved in constructing and presenting dynamic content to a user in oneform of the present system and method.

FIG. 5 is a process flow diagram demonstrating another example of thestages involved in constructing and presenting dynamic content to a userin another form of the present system and method.

FIG. 6 is a plan view illustrating an example of the creation anddelivery of dynamic content according to one form of the present systemand methods.

FIG. 7 is a process flow diagram illustrating one example of the stagesinvolved in blocking content delivery to users so requesting in one formof the present system and method.

DESCRIPTION OF THE SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS

For the purposes of promoting an understanding of the principles of theinvention, reference will now be made to the embodiments illustrated inthe drawings and specific language will be used to describe the same. Itwill nevertheless be understood that no limitation of the scope of theinvention is thereby intended. Any alterations and further modificationsin the described embodiments, and any further applications of theprinciples of the invention as described herein are contemplated aswould normally occur to one skilled in the art to which the inventionrelates.

Disclosed is a dynamic messaging service operated by a service host inconjunction with an entity of interest. The entity supplies a number ofcontent segments to the service host for use in message building. Theservice then provides a dynamically created message to the designateddevice of a number of end users indicated by the provider entity. Themessage may be an audio message suitable for delivery to the user'stelephone, a text message deliverable via SMS, a video/animation file,or another form of content capable of being transmitted to any one of avariety of differing user devices. The service host may be compensatedfor the service by the entity of interest, by the individual end users,through advertisement revenue generated by the placement ofadvertisements within the content, or through a combination of these orother revenue models.

In a preferred embodiment, the dynamic messaging service deliverscontent only to permission based end users. In this embodiment, the enduser may opt-in to the service using a variety of methods such as byproviding their contact information to an entity, dialing a specifiedphone number, providing information to a web site, sending a textmessage to a specified number, responding to an e-mail, belonging to anorganization, such as a musical artist' fan club, failing to opt out ofa prior voice message, or by various other methods known to one of skillin the art.

Turning to FIG. 1, a diagrammatic view of computer system 20 suitablefor use in one embodiment of the present invention is shown. Computersystem 20 includes computer network 22. Computer network 22 couplestogether a number of computers 21 over network pathways 23 a-23 d.Public switched telephone network 40 couples together Gateway Server 26and user device 42 over pathways 23 e-23 f. In one form, computers 21may also be connected to user device 42 through network 22 via networkpathway 23 g, such as when user device 42 is a VoIP endpoint or otherdigital communication device. Pathways 23 may also be traditional PSTNconnections, digital lines (such as T1, T3, OC3), or any othertransmission medium suitable for carrying content, such as a wireless orcellular network.

More specifically, system 20 includes several servers, namely Web Server24, Database Server 25, and Gateway Server 26. System 20 also includes aclient computer 30. While computers 21 are each illustrated as being aserver or client, it should be understood that any of computers 21 maybe arranged to include both a client and server. Furthermore, it shouldbe understood that while four computers 21 are illustrated, more orfewer may be utilized in alternative embodiments. In particular, itshall be appreciated that a large number of client computers, such asclient computer 30, may be in use within system 20 for performingoperations such as allowing numerous individual entities to connect toWeb Server 24.

Turning to implementation specifics, in the illustrative embodiment,computers 21 include one or more processors or CPUs (50 a, 50 b, 50 cand 50 d respectively) and one or more types of memory (52 a, 52 b, 52 cand 52 d respectively). Each memory 52 a-d preferably includes aremovable memory device. Each processor 50 a-50 d may be comprised ofone or more components configured as a single unit. Alternatively, whenof a multi-component form, a processor 50 a-50 d may have one or morecomponents located remotely relative to the others. One or morecomponents of each processor 50 a-50 d may be of the electronic varietydefining digital circuitry, analog circuitry, or both. In oneembodiment, each processor 50 a-50 d is of a conventional, integratedcircuit microprocessor arrangement, such as one or more PENTIUM 4 orXEON processors supplied by INTEL Corporation of 2200 Mission CollegeBoulevard, Santa Clara, Calif. 95052, USA.

Each memory 52 a-52 d (removable or generic) is one form of acomputer-readable device. Each memory may include one or more types ofsolid-state electronic memory, magnetic memory, or optical memory, justto name a few. By way of non-limiting example, each memory may includesolid-state electronic Random Access Memory (RAM), SequentiallyAccessible Memory (SAM) (such as the First-In, First-Out (FIFO) varietyor the Last-In-First-Out (LIFO) variety), Programmable Read Only Memory(PROM), Electronically Programmable Read Only Memory (EPROM), orElectrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EEPROM); an opticaldisc memory (such as a DVD or CD ROM); a magnetically encoded hard disc,floppy disc, tape, or cartridge media; or a combination of any of thesememory types. Also, each memory may be volatile, nonvolatile, or ahybrid combination of volatile and nonvolatile varieties.

Although not shown, in one embodiment each computer 21 is coupled to adisplay and/or includes an integrated display. Computers 21 may be ofthe same type, or a heterogeneous combination of different computingdevices. Likewise, displays may be of the same type, or a heterogeneouscombination of different visual devices. Although not shown, eachcomputer 21 may also include one or more operator input devices such asa keyboard or mouse to name just a few representative examples. Also,besides a display, one or more other output devices may be included suchas a printer. As such, various display, input and output devicearrangements are possible.

Computer network 22 can be in the form of a wireless or wired Local AreaNetwork (LAN), Municipal Area Network (MAN), Wide Area Network (WAN),such as the Internet, a combination of these, or such other networkarrangement as would occur to those skilled in the art. In a furtherform, several computers 21, such as Web Server 24, Database Server 25,and Gateway Server 26 may be coupled together by a secure portion ofnetwork 22 while remaining connected to client computer 30 via anunsecured portion of network 22. The operating logic of system 20 can beembodied in signals transmitted over network 22, in programminginstructions, dedicated hardware, or a combination of these. It shouldbe understood that more or fewer computers 21 can be coupled together bycomputer network 22.

In one embodiment, system 20 operates at one or more physical locationswhere Web Server 24 is configured to host application business logic 33for a dynamic message delivery service, Database Server 25 is configuredto store content segments received from an entity and end userinformation, and client computer 30 is configured for providing a userinterface 32, for allowing a representative of an entity of interest tointeract with the service, such as to enter user information,create/upload content segments, and/or initiate/manage the distributionof a batch of communications. It shall be appreciated that in alternateforms client computer 30 may be any web-enabled device, such as a PDA,Blackberry, or mobile phone, to name just a few illustrative examples.Furthermore, user interface 32 of client computer 30 may be aninstallable application such as one that communicates with Web Server24, browser-based, and/or embedded software, to name a few non-limitingexamples. In one embodiment, software installed locally on clientcomputers 30 is used to communicate with Web Server 24. In anotherembodiment, Web Server 24 provides HTML pages, data from web services,and/or other Internet standard or company proprietary data formats toone or more client computers 30 when requested. One of ordinary skill inthe art will recognize that the term Web Server 24 is used genericallyfor purposes of illustration and is not meant to imply that network 22is required to be the Internet.

Additionally, Gateway Server 26 includes business logic 35 andassociated hardware allowing operation as a predictive dialer fordistributing content to a select group of users retrieved from DatabaseServer 25. In one form Gateway Server 26 may initiate a digitalcommunication session with user device 42 via network 22. In analternate form Gateway Server 26 may initiate an analog communicationsession with user device 42 over the PSTN 40. Depending upon theparticular arrangement of system 20, user device 42 may be a traditionalanalog telephone, a mobile telephone, such as one implementing GSM orCDMA technology, or a digital telephone, such as a VoIP phone. It shallbe appreciated that more than one user devices will be included in useof system 20, but that only one has been shown to preserve clarity.Further, it shall be appreciated that the types of user devicesconnected to system 20 need not be of the same type, but that digital,analog, and other technologies may be accommodated simultaneously.

Typical applications of system 20 would include three servers, such asWeb Server 24, Database Server 25, and Gateway Server 26, but it will beappreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that the one or morefeatures provided by those servers could be provided by a singlecomputer or varying other arrangements of computers at one or morephysical locations and still be within the spirit of the invention.

Turning to FIG. 2, with continuing reference to FIG. 1, the stepsinvolved with the dynamic message delivery service utilizing system 20of FIG. 1 to set up a content distribution in collaboration with anentity of interest in one form of the present system and method areillustrated. It shall be appreciated that the entity may be anindividual, group, corporation, other business entity, or otherwise andthat in the event of a fictional entity, the steps performed by theentity may be performed by an individual or group of individuals such asan authorized representative. It shall be further appreciated that inthe following illustrative embodiment the distribution of voice andaudio content via telecommunication systems such as telephones will bedescribed for purposes of simplicity, but that the principles describedherein may be applied to other forms of content.

The process begins at start point 200 with the entity of interestcreating an account or accessing an existing account with the servicehost (stage 202). In one form, the entity is able to create an accountusing the web site hosted by Web Server 24 of system 20. Once theaccount is created and activated, the entity may log into the accountthrough the same web site, such as by using a username and passwordcombination or other web-based authentication method. Once logged in,the entity provides a number of content segments to the service (stage204) for use in building a dynamic voice message. In the illustrativeembodiments, these content segments are individual audio recordings,which may comprise speech, music, jingles, or other audio. In one form,the audio segments are created independently by the entity and uploadedto data store 34 of Database Server 25 from client computer 30 using aweb site served by Web Server 24. In an alternate form, the entity mayutilize Web Server 24 to request a telephone call from Gateway Server 26in which the service records the entity to create one or more contentsegments. The entity is then able to describe the content segmentsrecorded and store them in data store 34 by interacting with the website presented by Web Server 24. In yet another alternate form, theentity may create or approve scripts so that the service host mayarrange for the creation of the audio content segments and their storagein data store 34 for subsequent use in message building.

Turning to FIG. 3, in the illustrative embodiment, the types of contentsegments created in one form of the illustrative embodiment are shown ina logical form. In this form, the entity creates a plurality ofcategorized messages, such as a set of introductory segments 302, a setof main segments 306, and a set of promotional segments 308 which mayall be used in selective combination to create a complete message. In afurther form, the entity or service host may also create or provide aset of advertising segments 310 to be included within a completemessage. In another form, the advertising segments 310 may be providedby a third-party, such as a company having an advertising contract withthe entity or service host. In a still further form, the entity maycreate a set of feedback requesting segments 304 used to prompt a userfor a response during a live call.

Each content segment of a specific type created by the entity may havesimilar substance, such as in the case of the introductory segments 302,or each may contain unique or related substance. For example, the set ofintroductory segments 302 may include several unique segments eachincluding a unique greeting from an individual associated with theentity, while the set of main segments 306 may include unique segmentseach concerning differing subject matter, but spoken by the sameindividual. Additionally, the promotional segments 308 may each includethe description of a specific opportunity to interact with the entitycoming up in a selected geographical area. As seen by complete segment320, the service may select any number of content segments utilizingdynamic content selection logic 330 and arrange them in a serial fashionto generate a dynamic message suitable for distribution. It shall beappreciated that more than one of a specific type of content segment,such as promotional segment 308, may be included within a completemessage. Additionally, not all messages necessarily must contain acontent segment selected from each category of content in order to becomplete.

Returning to FIG. 2 with continued reference to FIG. 1, once the entityhas populated the content segments in stage 204, the entity provides alist of end users to the service (stage 206). As described herein, eachend user is preferably a permission based user who has previouslyopted-in to receiving content from the entity. Each end user listed isstored in data store 34 by Web Server 24 when provided by the entity.Each user in the data store 34 has an associated profile whichidentifies the device(s) the user has designated for content reception,optional accounting information, and additional information that theentity may have provided or that the service may have collected aboutthe user. For example, in the case of voice messaging, the designateddevice may be represented by a telephone number. Additionally, theentity may capture demographic information, purchase historyinformation, or any other available information for use by the service.The user profile maintained by the service may also include surveyinformation or any information which may be readily obtained from theuser information, such as the user's geographic location from their areacode/IP address, or the user's likely demographic from existinginformation such as their sex and/or date of birth.

Once the entity has populated the content to be delivered in stage 204and the users who will receive content in stage 206, the entityconfigures the content delivery to suit its needs (stage 208). In thepreferred embodiments, numerous templates exist which allow the entityto easily create content for several different types of users and themessages are then easily constructed from those segments and deliveredto the user based upon predetermined selection criteria. Thecustomization in this step of the process is limited only by theinformation available concerning a user, such as that stored in theirassociated user profiles, and the number of content segments created bythe entity. Examples of the customization possible will be illustratedin examples described below. Once the content delivery configuration isfinalized, the entity authorizes the service to begin delivering contentto the end users (stage 210). The service provides timing functionalityto allow the entity to coordinate when content should be delivered andmany other features, such as delivering only so many messages per hour,day, etc. At this point, the entity's configuration is completed and theprocess ends at stage 212.

Turning to FIG. 4, with continued reference to FIG. 1, one form of theprocess for building and delivering a dynamic voice message prior tolive contact is illustrated. It shall be appreciated that system 20 mayperform the process illustrated by FIG. 4 with respect to any number ofusers depending upon the capacity of system 20 contemporaneously and/orconsecutively. The process begins at start point 400 with the serviceselecting an end user and retrieving their associated user profile(stage 402). The service then builds a dynamic message specifically forthe user based upon their user profile (stage 404) using the variouscontent segments provided by the entity. The process for building thedynamic message may take many forms, such as a rules based approachselecting various message components from the pre-recorded contentsegments provided by the entity based upon characteristics of the useras indicated in their user profile. One exemplary method for performingthis step is further illustrated in the example which follows thedescription of the illustrative embodiments. It shall be appreciatedthat additional content segments may precede or be appended to thecomplete message. Once the complete message has been created, theservice connects to the user, such as by dialing the user using GatewayServer 26 (stage 406). Once the user or the user's answering device,picks up the incoming call, the service plays back the message over theline (stage 408). In one form, the service is capable of recognizing alive answer and the answer of a voicemail service, answering machine orsimilar device, and delays the playback of the content until recordingbegins. In alternate forms, the message may not be played back to ananswering device if desired by the entity. Once the message is deliveredin stage 408, the end user is recorded as having received the message intheir associated user profile (stage 410), thereby preventing duplicatecontact. Additionally, the service maintains a listing of the outcome ofeach content distribution to allow reporting back to the entity (stage412). For example, the status may indicate a completed call and theduration of the call, or the status may indicate that an end user wasunavailable, the number had been disconnected, or that the user hung upprior to the completion of the message. The process ends at endpoint414.

Turning to FIG. 5, with continued reference to FIG. 1, one form of theprocess for building and delivering a dynamic voice message during alive contact based upon user feedback is illustrated. As before, itshall be appreciated the system 20 may perform the process illustratedby FIG. 5 with respect to any number of users contemporaneously and/orconsecutively. The process begins at start point 500 with the serviceselecting an end user and retrieving their associated user profile(stage 502). The service then connects to the user, such as by dialingthe user using Gateway Server 26 (stage 504) utilizing the designateddevice stored in the associated user profile as the target. Once theuser picks up the line, such as by a live answer identification process,the service preferably provides an introductory content segment followedby prompting the user for feedback (stage 506). The introductory segmentmay be dynamically selected based on prior user information or genericto each communication. The prompt for feedback may be a question such asa multiple choice question seeking a user response in the form of akeypress (DTMF tone) or spoken response through the use of a voicerecognition component. In other forms, the service may prompt the userfor a survey response, such as one requiring a numeric response, such ason a scale of one to ten or otherwise. The response may indicate a userinterest level, a perceived rating, age, or some other quantifiableresponse. In a still further form, the service may record the spokenfeedback provided by the user for further processing or subsequenttransmission to the entity.

Once an appropriate response is received by the service from thecurrently connected live user, the service constructs a dynamic messagein near real-time from the content segments based on the responsesreceived (stage 510). The message is constructed in a similar fashion asthat described above, but is based upon just obtained information. Itshall be appreciated that the construction of the dynamic message mayalso be based upon previously acquired information, such as from priorresponses during previous calls to the user or upon information storedin the associated user profile. Once created, the voice message ispresented to the user over the preexisting live communication session(stage 512).

Following the delivery of the message, the end user is indicated ashaving received the message in their associated user profile (stage514), thereby preventing duplicate contact. Additionally, the servicemaintains a listing of the outcome of each content distribution to allowreporting back to the entity (stage 516). For example, the status mayindicate a completed call and the duration of the call, or the statusmay indicate that an end user was unavailable, the number had beendisconnected, or that the user hung up prior to the completion of themessage. Additionally, the service preferably stores the responsesreceived from the user during the live call to the user's associateduser profile to prevent duplicate questioning of a user or for later usein message building (stage 518). The process ends at endpoint 520.

As illustrated by the previous embodiment, the service creates acomplete message dynamically for each user specified by the entity. Eachcomplete message is dynamically created from the plurality of contentsegments created or approved by the entity. In one preferred embodiment,the complete messages are created based upon the information stored inthe profile associated with each user. In another preferred embodiment,the complete messages are created based upon responses received from auser during a live communication session. In a further preferred form,the complete messages may be based upon both of the previous types ofinformation. As such, a first user may receive a completely distinctmessage from that received by a second user. By utilizing thisarrangement, a large combination of unique complete messages may bedynamically constructed from the relatively smaller sets of categorizedcontent segments, allowing a provider to offer a high personalized andtargeted message to each individual user.

In another form, users may be grouped into smaller classifications basedupon the information in their associated records. For instance, a groupof female users may receive one message while male users would receiveanother. In another example, a set of prospective customers may receiveone message, while a set of prior customers may receive a differentrenewal message.

For purposes of illustration, one hypothetical example of the operationof the service will be provided with reference to FIG. 6. The exampleincludes two users who are voters affiliated with a certain politicalparty, and that political party is the entity of interest sponsoring thecontent distribution. The entity, such as by way of a campaign manager,logs on to the website of the service, or provides their information aspart of a registration process, and begins the configuration of thecontent distribution. The political party uploads a list of registeredvoters, such as a list of those who have entered their phone number in abox on the party's web site requesting to be contacted by the party. Thepolitical party then creates a plurality of categorized contentsegments. For example, in preparation for an upcoming election, a partymay create a set of introductory segments greeting the user. Eachmessage may be spoken by a different well-respected politician withinthe party. Additionally, a set of main segments may be recorded by anumber of candidates within the party running for election. These mainsegments may include an introduction to the candidate, the candidate'sviews on one or more issues, or some other message. Furthermore, theparty also creates a set of promotional segments, which may notify usersof upcoming political rallies, round-table discussions, communityforums, teleconferences, or provide a reminder of the user's designatedpolling place and time.

The service host then dynamically creates a completed message targetedto the first selected user 600, which may be subsequently distributed tothe user at their designated phone number. In this example, the firstuser 600, is a 60 year old man who has indicated his concern over thegrowing crime rate. Based upon information obtained and provided by theparty, the service is aware that the man is a strong proponent of formerPresident George Bush. As such, the service selects intro segment 602, awelcome greeting from George Bush. The call may then include a mainsegment 604 from the Republican Party candidate running for mayor in theman's hometown. Additionally, the call may include a promotional segment606 inviting the man to attend a town hall meeting taking place the nextnight near the man's home in which the mayoral candidate will discussthe town's crime rates and what he/she plans to do to lower them. Thepromotional segment 606 is selected due to its proximity to the zip codefrom the man's home address stored in his associated user profile. Bybeing presented with a function located close by, the likelihood of theman's participation is greatly increased.

At the same time, a second user 650 who is a young female voter withconcerns about education and abortion may receive a call having anintroductory segment 652 containing a welcome greeting from a prominentfemale leader within the party such as Condoleezza Rice. Theintroductory segment 652 may be selected by the service because the user650 is a female. The call then prompts the user 650 with a feedbackrequesting segment 654 which prompts the user for their thoughts onvarious candidates within the party. The call may then include a messagefrom the Republican Party candidate running for Congress in the woman'sdistrict. The message may include the candidate explaining his/herreasons for supporting educational reform, his/her prior voting historyconcerning this issue, and their support of strictly regulatingabortion. This message is selected based upon the response provided bythe user 650 to the feedback requesting segment 654. In this example,the user 650 may have indicated a lower level of knowledge of thecandidates running for Congress in her district. Additionally, the callmay also include a promotional segment 658 which reminds the user 650 tovote and also alerts the user 650 to the address of her designatedpolling station.

According to a further form, the service may also provide advertisingsegments within one or more complete messages. With respect to the aboveexample, advertising segments 608 and 660 may be selected as targetedadvertisements from a collection of advertisements provided by theentity or by the service host. The targeted advertisements arepreferably selected for inclusion based upon the user profile and theirresponses. As such, the advertisement segment 608 is an advertisementfor a luxury auto maker which would target an older male demographic,while advertisement segment 660, selected for user 650, is for a dietsoda company which may target a younger female audience.

Turning to FIG. 7, the process for preventing the distribution ofcontent to globally opted-out users is illustrated. This optionalfeature allows an end user to block the content distribution of theservice despite the receiving of a listing of end users containing theuser's device. Therefore, no matter which entity requests content to besent to the user's device, the end user has the authority to elect notto be contacted at all. The process begins at start point 700 with theservice selecting a user for content distribution (stage 702). Theservice then retrieves a persistent global list of blocked user devices(stage 704). The list of blocked devices may be created by allowingusers to sign up for the block list via the service host's website,another website, sending a letter, by opting out during a livecommunication, or other means. The designated device stored in theassociated user profile is checked for its presence in the list (stage706), which may be a listing of blocked telephone numbers. If the deviceis not listed in the blocked list, then the content distribution isallowed to proceed (stage 708). If the device is on the list, then thecontent distribution is blocked and the process ends at stage 710.

While the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in thedrawings and foregoing description, the same is to be considered asillustrative and not restrictive in character, it being understood thatonly the preferred embodiment has been shown and described and that allequivalents, changes, and modifications that come within the spirit ofthe inventions as described herein and/or by the following claims aredesired to be protected.

1. A method for delivering voice messages containing dynamic content toa plurality of permission based users on behalf of a predeterminedentity comprising the steps of: creating a first user profile associatedwith a first permission based user; populating said first user profilewith information pertaining to said first permission based user; storinga plurality of content segments associated with said predeterminedentity; creating a first voice message comprising a subset of saidplurality of content segments based at least upon said first userprofile; and delivering said first voice message to said firstpermission based user via an outgoing telecommunication session.
 2. Themethod of claim 1, wherein said first user profile includes a telephonenumber associated with said first permission based user.
 3. The methodof claim 2, wherein said first user profile includes the gender, age,and geographic location of said first permission based user.
 4. Themethod of claim 2, wherein said first user profile includes thetransaction history between said first permission based user and saidpredetermined entity.
 5. The method of claim 4, wherein said transactionhistory includes at least a partial listing of previous purchases madeby said first permission based user.
 6. The method of claim 4, whereinsaid transaction history includes a listing of previous voice messagessent to said first permission based user.
 7. The method of claim 4,wherein said transaction history includes an interaction between theentity and said first permission based user.
 8. The method of claim 7,wherein said interaction is an e-mail.
 9. The method of claim 7, whereinsaid interaction is a post to an electronic forum.
 10. The method ofclaim 7, wherein said interaction is comment in response to a blog post.11. The method of claim 6, wherein said listing of previous voicemessages includes an indication of whether at least one voice messagewas received live by said first permission based user.
 12. The method ofclaim 6, wherein said listing includes the amount of said voice messagereceived by said first permission based user.
 13. The method of claim 6,wherein the listing of previous voice messages includes an indicationthat the voice message was delivered to the voicemail or answeringdevice of said first permission based user.
 14. The method of claim 2,wherein said content segments are audio recordings.
 15. The method ofclaim 14, wherein said audio recordings are recorded during atelecommunication session established in response to a request submittedto an interactive web-site.
 16. The method of claim 14, wherein saidaudio recordings are stored in digital files.
 17. The method of claim16, wherein said digital files are provided by said predeterminedentity.
 18. The method of claim 2, wherein said content segments aregenerated by a text to speech algorithm.
 19. The method of claim 1,wherein said first voice message is comprised of a subset of saidplurality of content segments arranged in series.
 20. The method ofclaim 1, wherein said first voice message is comprised of a subset ofsaid plurality of content segments and one or more advertisementsegments arranged in series.
 21. The method of claim 20, wherein saidone or more advertisement segments are selected from a plurality ofstored advertisement segments associated with an entity other than saidpredetermined entity based upon said first user profile.
 22. The methodof claim 1, wherein said permission based user for purposes of saiddelivering is a voicemail box or answering machine associated with saidfirst permission based user.
 23. A method for preventing delivery ofvoice messages to a specific listing of users comprising the steps of:receiving a request from a user indicating that said user no longerwishes to be contacted including a telephone number associated with saiduser; adding said telephone number to a listing of blocked telephonenumbers; receiving a request to automatically deliver a voice message toa permission based user at a specified telephone number; and blockingthe dialing of said specified telephone number when said specifiedtelephone number matches an entry within said listing of blockedtelephone numbers.
 24. The method of claim 23, wherein said request isreceived through a web page.
 25. The method of claim 23, wherein saidrequest is received as a DTMF tone during a live telephone call.
 26. Themethod of claim 23, wherein said request is spoken by said permissionbased user and received by a voice recognition algorithm.
 27. The methodof claim 23, wherein said request is received as an e-mail.